The Brief – Wednesday 3 December – Apple’s Head of AI steps down, a win for journalists at Politico, Warner Bros. Discovery sale nears close and more
Welcome to The Media Leader’s daily round-up of media news you might have missed and need to know.
? Apple’s head of artificial intelligence, John Giannandrea, is stepping down and Amar Subramanya, a Microsoft executive, with 16 years experience at Google is replacing him. Apple has been slow to overhaul its AI products in comparison to competitors such as Google. (The Guardian)
? Journalists at Politico in the US went to arbitration in a dispute with management over the use of AI tools, and won the ruling. They also launched a nationwide “News Not Slop” campaign. The dispute centred around a “Live Summaries” feature used during the 2024 Democratic Convention and a Capitol AI Report-Builder tool available for Politico Pro subscribers. (Press Gazette)
? A pre-trial libel judgement has found that the description of influencer Andy Ngo as an “alt-right agitator” in a music review in the Observer was defamatory, which the Guardian News and Media will now need to defend in court. (Press Gazette)
? In a second round of bids for Warner Bros. Discovery,Netflix made a mostly cash offer in an auction which could finalise in the coming days or weeks, according to people familiar with the discussions. (Bloomberg)
? Edison Research has announced The Joe Rogan Experience, The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett, and The Rest Is Politics top the list in Q3, as they did in Q2 2025. The top six shows remain in the same rank order as Q2. (Podnews)
? OpenAI’s chief executive Sam Altman has reportedly declared “code red” and is urging staff to improve its product ChatGPT, signalling competitors like Google and Anthropic are catching up. In the memo, reported by Wall Street Journal and The Information, Altman said the company will delay other initiatives, such as ads, shopping and health agents to focus more on improving ChatGPT. (The Verge)
? YouTube is releasing a new roundup experience that allows users to review their most notable video habits from over the year. The new feature is called “The Recap” and is based on a user’s watch history, and has launched in the US on Tuesday, and will roll out globally this week. (The Verge)
